Lancaster – Ohio University Lancaster Theatre will be performing Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella this summer as part of Lancaster Festival.

“We are privileged and honored to be presenting, during the Lancaster Festival, Rodger’s and Hammerstein’s Cinderella,” said OUL Theatre Director Victor Jones. “It’s a highly restricted license now because the show is running on Broadway. For us to get that honor, and for them to approve the licensing is huge. We were one of the few chosen.”

The musical will be a community theatre production which means actors from the region can audition for roles in addition to OUL Theatre students. Auditions will be held Saturday, March 29 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Sunday, March 30 from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.

“I think the more important roles when casting this show will be Cinderella and the Prince,” said Jones. “We have to be swept away with the love that they have, and for a moment, while we’re sitting in the audience, we have to believe they are Cinderella and the Prince. We have to believe that they are falling in love. That chemistry is crucial to the success of the show. It has to be there.”

“The audition process is exciting to see what people bring to it and what effort they put into it,” said Jones. “It’s exciting to see new talent or to see someone audition for a role you wouldn’t have thought they would audition for, and they’re really putting their heart and soul into it. It’s a discovery process.”

The premiere of Cinderella will be July 20 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. The show will run through August 3. Tickets will cost $10, $12 and $14.

“The music is gorgeous. It is classic musical theatre,” said Jones. “This material is so from the heart. The melodies are beautiful. When you leave the theatre, you’re going to be singing these songs. I want the audience to be taken back to this magical, pure time of love and romance. The characters are so endearing, you can’t help but love all of them.”